FILE: RELNOTES.TXT
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* ThrustMaster Fusion Game Pad *
* Release Notes *
* October 22, 1998 *
* *
* (c) 1996-1998 ThrustMaster Inc. *
******************************************************************
This file provides late-breaking information that does not appear
in the printed documentation shipped with the ThrustMaster Fusion
game pad.
==================================================================
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Contents
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1. Description of Files Contained on this Disk
2. Software Installation Procedure
3. Fusion Notes
3.1. Known Issues using the Fusion under Windows 95/98
3.2. Using Fusion with DOS Games
4. Getting help with your ThrustMaster product
4.1. Determining which software version you have
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1. Description of Files Contained on This Disk
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\Utils Folder:
Contains a collection of useful utility programs that can be
used to provide you with information about your racing wheel
and/or USB. The following describes each of the included
utilities:
USBReady.Exe - The USBReady utility can be used as a
troubleshooting tool if you are working on
getting USB running on your computer. USBReady
is produced by Intel Corp.
JoyView.Exe - JoyView is a ThrustMaster utility that is
useful for testing all kinds of game devices
operating (or not operating) under Windows.
Joyview works with ThrustMaster and other
brands of game devices.
TMScope - TMScope is a trusty DOS utility that is handy
for checking the operation of game devices
under DOS or Windows 9x DOS mode. If you are
having trouble using the joystick (or any other
game control) in DOS mode, use TMScope to see
what is going on.
\directx Folder:
This folder contains all the files necessary to install DirectX
on your system. If you need to install DirectX 5, we recommend
that you use the Fusion Setup program to begin the installation
instead of running it directly from one of the \directx
subfolders.
The version of DirectX on this disk is v5.2a.
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2. Software Installation Procedure
-----------------------------------
If you haven't already figured it out, here is how to install the
ThrustMaster Fusion software:
1. Insert the CD into your CD-ROM drive.
2. If your system is AutoPlay-enabled, the Setup program will
start automatically. If your system is not AutoPlay-
enabled, you can open the "My Computer" folder on your
desktop and then double-click on the drive letter that
corresponds with your CD-ROM drive. The Setup program will
begin to run.
3. Follow the instructions and prompts given by the Setup
program. Setup will perform several checks on your system,
and guide you through the steps needed to get your Fusion
game pad up and running with your system.
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3. Fusion Notes
------------------------------
The Fusion game pad is similar in appearance to ThrustMaster's
best-selling RAGE 3D game pad introduced in 1997. Dual
connectivity, including USB technology, has been added to the
design of the Fusion to the design of the Fusion to give
a more convenient, high-performance connection to your computer.
- The DirectConnect technology included in the design of the
Fusion allows the game pad unlimited configurability. The Fusion
can also be configured to control your mouse cursor.
- The Fusion's dual connectivity feature gives you the option
of connecting to your computer in one of two ways: either
through a standard game port, or a Universal Serial Bus (USB)
port (if your system's hardware and software is set up to work
with USB peripherals). The Universal Serial Bus is a high speed,
Plug-and-Play-compatible interface that is now a standard feature
included on most Pentium-based computers. Software support for
USB is available as an add-on for late OEM versions of the Windows
95 operating system and is built into the Microsoft Windows 98
operating system. USB software support is also built into Apple's
OS 8 and 8.5 operating systems (although currently only the iMac
includes USB hardware support.
3.1. Known Issues using Fusion under Windows 95/98
----------------------------------------------------
- Connecting the Fusion to your system's game port through
an external joystick switch box or extension cable may
cause the game pad to behave erratically. We recommend
that you connect it directly to the game port if possible,
or connect it using a USB port if your system supports USB
and you are running Windows 98.
- The "question mark" button on the Fusion Properties panel does
not display context help.
Software Updates
----------------
Software updates for all ThrustMaster software is posted regularly
on TM's World Wide Web site. Please check there for technical
support information as well as software updates.
3.2. Using Fusion with DOS Games
--------------------------------
a) The Fusion game pad will work with DOS-based games run within a
Windows 95/98 DOS shell. In this case, the game pad's controls
will appear as the following game port inputs:
Control Game Port Input
------- ---------------
D-Pad Left/Right Axis X1
D-Pad Up/Down Axis Y1
Button A Button 1
Button B Button 2
Button C Button 3
Button X Button 4
The Y, Z, Start, Select, and Trigger buttons are not recognized
as game port inputs, however they can be assigned to other game
actions using the ThrustMapper application.
b) The Fusion will NOT work when your system is in MS-DOS mode or
started using native DOS. This is because the drivers that
communicate with the device require a Windows environment in
which to run.
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4. Getting help with your ThrustMaster product
-----------------------------------------------
You can contact ThrustMaster Customer Support by telephone at
(503) 615-3200, 9:00am - 6:00pm Pacific time, or by Internet
via our World Wide Web site at www.thrustmaster.com.
4.1. Determining which software version you have
-------------------------------------------------
When you call customer support, software version numbers help to
resolve problems.
** Windows **
For all ThrustMaster software developed for Windows, select the
"Help" menu bar option, then choose the "About" heading to find
the version information. The version number is in the form
XX.XX.XXXX .
For files that are not applications (such as drivers or DLLs) you
can use the Windows Explorer to examine the file's Properties.
Selecting the "Version" tab will display the file's version number.
** Macintosh**
For iMac USB game device drivers, the version number can be found
by selecting "Get Info" (CMD-I) once the driver has been located in
the Extensions folder. The name format for ThrustMaster USB drivers
for Macintosh is:
"InputSprocket <product> USB"
where <product> is the name of the ThrustMaster device whose
driver you are searching for.
Our tech support personnel may ask if you have the JoyView
utility, which is a program that helps us to track down problems
with your system configuration and/or game device. JoyView is
included on your Fusion installation CD in the \Utils folder.
----End of release notes-----
Download Driver Pack
After your driver has been downloaded, follow these simple steps to install it.
Expand the archive file (if the download file is in zip or rar format).
If the expanded file has an .exe extension, double click it and follow the installation instructions.
Otherwise, open Device Manager by right-clicking the Start menu and selecting Device Manager.
Find the device and model you want to update in the device list.
Double-click on it to open the Properties dialog box.
From the Properties dialog box, select the Driver tab.
Click the Update Driver button, then follow the instructions.
Very important: You must reboot your system to ensure that any driver updates have taken effect.
For more help, visit our Driver Support section for step-by-step videos on how to install drivers for every file type.